


Weather Turning

by griffonskies



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Gen, It's not a good idea, Not Beta Read, Rain, Shance if you squint, a bit of homesickness, crumbling civilisations, don't imitate Lance, unadvised desert travel ways
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-26
Updated: 2019-05-26
Packaged: 2020-03-19 23:01:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18980122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/griffonskies/pseuds/griffonskies
Summary: The Paladins go in search of an obscure power source on a lone planet. Splitting to cover more ground Lance and Shiro end up in a desert.





	Weather Turning

**Author's Note:**

  * For [spavebearbooksink](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=spavebearbooksink).



> Hi, this is a bit late Tears of Neptune exchange piece for @spavebearbooksink
> 
> I hope you like it!

A sole red star shone alone in the Yazanne quadrant, casting light on its seven planets and countless comets and asteroids. The Lions made their way to the third planet. A lone sphere with no satellites to accompany it.

They separated into two groups as they entered the atmosphere. Blue and Black for the golden desert in the west. Green, Red, and Yellow for the white mountains in the east.

“Excellent,” said Coran over the communication system “The Lions are almost at their destinations Princess.” 

“Good. I will start the ship scanners now,” said Allura, stepping up to the platform. An additional screen activated, it pulsed once, twice with the scanners and lines appeared showing the topography of the planet - all of it gray for the moment. “Paladins, activate far range scanners.” 

“You got it!”

Five lion heads appeared on the screen, pulsing with their respective color as the scanning systems connected. The gray lines turned to color, showing water edges, mountain tops, forest and tundras, and snowcaps. And sparingly, scattered, there were signs of settlements, colored in dark reds and greys and blues. 

Everyone held their breath… but no signs of life flickered on the screen. They sighed, almost in unison and privately wondered what had happened to the inhabitants over the millennia.

“So… what are we searching for again?” asked Hunk.

“Dantium, a rare power source. It used to only be made here, by the people of Yaze,” Coran began “Why in their time -”

“And how do we recognize it?” asked Lance, cutting Coran mid-sentence.

“Hm, it usually came in cube form, fist-sized with a shiny surface. You used to be able to find them in every settlement, being the main power source for the people here. We’ll have to see if you can find a settlement with it.”

“Sooo, why can't we just find the storage buildings with the scanners? If it’s a power source?”

“Because it only becomes a power source when you break it open, otherwise it’s just a shiny cube.”

“Roger that. Black and Blue ready for landing,” said Shiro. 

“Us too,” chimed in the remaining three pilots.

* * *

Blue landed in a valley of big golden dunes. The fine sand rose in a wave from the pressure and obscured his vision.

The sun glared down on the Lion, Lance could almost see the heat as it raised in waves of the blue and silver metal. Black landed a moment later right next to him, but Lance was already walking out the cockpit and out the Lion's mouth, full armor and visor covering his face to protect from the heat.

The new armor boots made it easier to walk on uneven terrain but even that could not help Lance as he took the first step and sunk to his ankle in the almost white sand. He stumbled the first few steps but righted himself and made his way to the other Lion just as Shiro was stepping out.

They made their way to the edge of the dune. Bright sand reaching towards a bright blue sky. Lance tried to take a step up the dune but slid down as his foot sunk into the sand. He tried again and again and just slid and slid until he fell forward and slid on his front to the bottom of the dune. Annoyed he looked up the slope at the sky. 

“At least you guys are in a forest! And we’re here in a freaking desert...” he grumbled into his communicator, talking to the other group. 

Keith shot back immediately, “Quit your whining. At least you’re in a warm place - ” 

“This forest is like pure ice, man!” Hunk jumped in. 

Lance huffed at them and was about to snap back when Shiro stepped up to him, grabbing him by the armor back, and in one swing, righted him on his feet. Lance could feel himself go warm in both awe and embarrassment.

“You guys almost to your target?” Shiro asked into the communicator.

“Just reached the outskirts. We’re going to the main building now,” said Keith, tone going soldier perfect.

“Good. Stay cautious. We don’t know what we will find in there.”

A chorus of “Yes, sir” answered him.

Lance rubbed the back of his neck and both of them looked back up to the top of the dune they needed to traverse. Looking up the dry sand and up the slope into clear skies. He wondered when was the last time this area had seen rain. If it ever even rained in this heat and largely dry planet. 

“Why can’t we just fly with the Lions to the buildings again?” asked Lance.

“Because Dantium, when active, causes a disturbance in the Lions,” answered Allura, “You must bring back only undamaged cubes.”

“Yes, Princess,” said Shiro.

“Good, now get going.”

Lance looked to the left and found the same dunes stretching as far as he could see. He looked to the right and found the same. So they couldn’t just walk around these.

“So how do we get there?” he asked in thought.

Shiro hummed in response... then, “Let me try something” he said.

He stepped to the side away from Lance, crouched down and jumped, activating his jetpack mid-jump. He flew up the slope, feet almost touching the sand. The jetpack leaving a trail in the sand. He stopped a third of the way to the top, anchoring both feet almost to the knees in the sand as to not slide down too far. The movement displaced the sand, sending it down in small lawines. It made a whistling sound as it went all the way down to Lance’s feet. 

“Huh, signing sand… nice!” he smiled wide and then did the same as Shiro. Or tried to.

On the first try, his feet caught in the sand and made him stumble, on the second he was too low and flew right into the side of the dune. He huffed up through the sand at Shiro who was already to the top and was looking down at Lance to see if he needed help. He twitched his nose, wondering why he couldn’t be as graceful in the air as the other paladin, and then just reminded himself that this was Shiro he was thinking about and got up to try again. And this time he got to the top without trouble.

From the top of the dune, they slid down the other side. The sand making them twist and turn side to side and almost looked like they were on a snowy hill, skiing. Back at the bottom, they flew again up the next dune. Again and again. Lance exclaimed in euphoria while sliding down on a dune, and trying for a trick jump, ended up rolling down the dune head over feet. 

They got to the top of the last dune, the highest one yet, and stopped to take in the horizon. 

The first signs of wind made the sand at their feet sing, blowing it up to the slope and over the other side. In the distance a turquoise ocean stretched into the horizon, merging with the sky in the distance. White waves crashed and crashed against the sandy shores that stretching in both directions. 

And right there, where the sands met the ocean were the first signs of buildings. Half-sunken in the sand, leaning into the waters.

They glided down the last dune. Going past an almost sand covered sphere like building. At the foot of the dune, the waves crashed against crooked cylinder buildings and broken of bridges that used to connect the buildings high above them. Whatever the building material was used, it looked like red sandstone and almost blended into the sand. But the color of it clashed against the blue-green of the sea.

The bigger buildings started right here, in the shallows, and continued on into the waters.

Shiro taped at his wrist to bring up a map. The screen flashed before them, a red dot pulsing atop one of the cylinder buildings half a kilometer into the water.

“Guess we’ll have to swim, huh?” said Shiro, smiling at Lance from the corner of his eyes.

Lance pumped his fist in victory, “Ow yeah! Now, this is my forte!” 

He grabbed Shiro by the hand and proceed to drag him running into the shallows and into the water. Diving under the waves as smoothly as a seal. Shiro laughed the whole way.

The bottom of the ocean was as lifeless as the surface has been. The crumbling buildings the only sign of there ever having been life in the area.

They made their way around buildings and under bridges. At last, they stopped at the foot of their target. A wide hexagon like building, leaning in the sand and missing parts of its sides. But there was no obvious entrance, just smooth red stone. 

In the end, Lance found a small opening at the top of one of the broken bridges. The gap was just large enough for them to enter one by one into a dark hallway. Turning on their lights they saw the walls and floors made from the same sandstone-like material, only more yellow than red. 

Lance turned on his echolocation scanners to form a floor plan.

Then, arm raised to guide the way, he grabbed Shiro by the hand again and they swam past the corridor, down a few sets of what were probably stairs once, pass a few rooms and down a shaft. They knew they were way under the sandy bottom of the ocean by now.

Here, at the very bottom they found a closed door and pushing it open, one on each side, out fell a handful of Dantium cubes, slowly floating and bouncing off the floor. 

But even that seemed to be too much for them, and as they fell, hitting the floor with their tips and sides, they cracked open one by one. Some just broke off a tip, some cracked down the middle and others broke into shards too many to count. But all of them opened up to reveal beautiful multicolored, geometric crystals within. They reminded Lance of chemistry class and working with bismuth metal, heating it up and making crystals with it as it cooled.

After a moment, the shards started to glow, painting the walls around them in all colors. The light dancing with the movement of the water around them. By the time the Dantium had stopped falling there was enough light in the room they didn’t need their lamps anymore. 

Their helmets activated, flashing a yellow danger sign from energy radiation. But luckily the suits were more than adequate for protection.

Shiro reached into the pile of leftover Dantium, taking one cube from the pile. But no sooner had he grasped it, it crumbled right under his fingers in a scatter of shards, color, and light. They both looked on in confusion.

“Umm… Coran? The Dantium seems a bit… brittle - ” began Shiro.

“A lot brittle, like crumbling in your hand brittle,” supplied Lance.

“Well, we don’t need those! Those have obviously not matured well. You need to take those that don’t break. Best try smashing them against a wall.”

Both of them looked into the big room, wall to wall filled with stacks of Dantium.

“This is going to take a while...”

* * *

In the end, they only found five mature cubes, Coran exclaiming the whole way what a success this mission was.

They made their way out the water and up the dune slopes. This time Shiro taking Lance’s hand for both their balance. They flew and slid until they got to the top of the dune looking over their Lions, and paused in wonder.

The Lions had sunk a bit in the time they’ve been away, their claws no longer visible from the sand. 

But more than that. In the distance, the sky was no longer a clear, bright blue. It was gray. A dark, angry gray of storm clouds. Mist reached down from the clouds towards the ground and cast deep shadows upon the darkening sand.

It was raining. And coming towards them.

Lance could feel himself gasp in wonder. Thinking back to home on Earth, and heavy rain clouds gliding over the blue, blue Caribbean waters.

By the time they slid down the slope to the foot of their Lions, the rain has started to fall above them. Drop by drop on their visors until it was a steady pour and the gold sands turned dark brown and the horizon was engulfed in gray mist.

Lance stopped and looked up, water obscuring his vision and wishing this was an Earth-like planet so he could remove his helmet. He looked over at Shiro who moved his gaze from the sky to look back at Lance. They smiled at each other and took a moment to enjoy the weather they haven't seen in so long.

Lance looked right up at the sky, closed his eyes and just listened to the rainfall.


End file.
